Real Madrid welcome Benfica to the Bernabeu
Real Madrid will welcome Benfica to the Bernabeu this evening for the second leg of their Champions League knockout round playoff.
Los Blancos have a slender lead in the tie, having recorded a 1-0 victory in the first leg last week, with Vinicius Junior scoring the only goal of the match. But that far from tells the whole story, as there has been an incredible fall-out which remains ongoing, adding to the tension leading into this match.
Vinicius accused Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni of racially abusing him shortly after the opening goal, which led to a 10-minute stoppage before the contest resumed, and UEFA continue to investigate the incident, which dominated the post-match discussion.
Los Blancos head coach Alvaro Arbeloa will ensure that Vinicius is in the right frame of mind before deciding whether to select him on Wednesday, but the expectation is that the attacker will start, and he will be determined to help the capital giants finish the job.
Real Madrid will enter the game off the back of a 2-1 loss to Osasuna, which has left them in second spot in the La Liga table, and there will have to be a huge improvement in terms of performance if Los Blancos are to progress in the Champions League.
The Madrid giants have won five of their last six games against Portuguese opponents, and should they manage to navigate their way into the last-16 stage of the tournament, a two-legged tie against either Sporting Lisbon or Manchester City will be on the cards.
Real Madrid are not exactly in full flow at the moment, but Los Blancos should have enough to secure their spot in the last-16 stage of the tournament.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
PSG can advance with a win or draw against Monaco
Paris Saint-Germain can book a place in the last 16 of the Champions League for a 14th successive campaign with a win or draw versus Monaco in leg two of that playoff matchup today at the Parc des Princes.
In the opening leg of this tie, the reigning champions of this tournament came from behind to beat Monaco 3-2.
The opening 20 minutes in the Principality could not have gone much worse for Les Parisiens, but to their credit, they stuck with it and fought back.
Luis Enrique’s men have claimed victory in four straight knockout matches in this competition while winning their last two such outings on home soil.
The French giants could win seven of their last eight two-legged Champions League ties with a triumph on Wednesday, having won three of their previous four second-leg affairs in this tournament.
They will enter this contest unbeaten in eight of their previous nine competitive fixtures at the Parc des Princes, having won their last two outings in Paris by a combined margin of 8-0.
PSG are unbeaten in their last five meetings with the Principality Club in the French capital and have not lost a one-off knockout game against them this century.
At Monaco, Paul Pogba, Mohammed Salisu, Takumi Minamino and Lukas Hradecky are out with knee injuries and this will make the tie more difficult for them.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Juve require a miracle against Galatasaray to gain redemption
Requiring a minor miracle to gain Champions League redemption, fallen giants Juventus will welcome Galatasaray to Turin this evening.
Last week, the Italian side were thumped 5-2 in Istanbul, so Gala are huge favourites to win their playoff tie and stride straight through to the last 16.
Juventus fans witnessed one of their club’s worst European nights unfold in the Turkish capital last Tuesday.
So, they will need an historic performance to turn the tie around: on 49 occasions when a team has lost the first leg of a Champions League contest by at least three goals, only four have reached the next round.
Juve’s long unbeaten home record in Serie A – which dated back to last season – was finally ended by their fellow top-four contenders on Saturday, with a tame 2-0 defeat in Turin.
A modest tally of 46 points – currently four behind the Champions League places – is their worst at this stage of any campaign since 2011, so Sunday’s clash with fourth-placed Roma has a lot riding on it for both clubs.
First, Luciano Spalletti’s team must try to salvage some pride by beating Galatasaray for the first time in 22 years.
To date, Gala have lost just one of seven meetings with Juventus, after last week’s win equalled their biggest margin of victory in the Champions League.
The Turkish giants may already be dreaming of a last-16 clash with either Liverpool or Tottenham Hotspur.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Atalanta to keep Champs League dreams alive when they host Dortmund
Trailing by two goals after last week’s first leg, Atalanta BC will try to keep their Champions League dreams alive when they welcome Borussia Dortmund to Bergamo today.
With the winner of this playoff set to meet either Arsenal or Bayern Munich, Dortmund will start as favourites to reach the last 16.
Though Atalanta finished two points and two places better off than Borussia Dortmund in the league phase, earning home advantage for this second leg, they have been left with a mountain to climb after losing 2-0 last Tuesday.
So, they must now try to become the first team to progress through a knockout tie after losing the first leg by two or more goals since Liverpool miraculously defeated Barcelona back in 2019.
Atalanta remain undefeated in domestic fixtures this calendar year – thanks to eight wins and two draws – and they managed to topple the Scudetto holders on Sunday.
Turning around a deficit, two second-half headers saw off Napoli, with goals from Mario Pasalic and Lazar Samardzic inching La Dea closer to the all-important top four.
A few hours before Atalanta celebrated that victory, Dortmund had pulled off a fightback of their own, as Fabio Silva equalised with almost the last kick of a 2-2 draw against RB Leipzig.
Atalanta have enjoyed some memorable European nights – particularly en route to winning the Europa League – but turning this tie around may prove beyond them.
Having gained some grit under Kovac, Dortmund can keep level heads even if they come under intense pressure.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
FIXTURES
Atalanta 17:45 Borussia Dortmund
Juventus 20:00 Galatasaray
Paris Saint-Germain 20:00 Monaco
Real Madrid 20:00 Benfica
